Sunday, January 15, 2006
Sentenced to Pray
Can a judge - who is an officer of the "state" - be allowed to sentence a person to attend a church! Is that constitutional or a blatant breach in the wall between church and state?
...Haines, who was accused of using racial slurs and threatening a black cab driver, must attend services at a predominantly black church. "It seems readily apparent to me that you don't like black people," Judge William Mallory Jr. told Haines. "That's OK with me. But you have to understand that you are at the whim and authority of a black judge."(bolding by Pam)
That's when Mallory offered church as an alternative sentence, an option he said might broaden Haines' cultural awareness. "If you want to get out of jail, you're going to have to raise your black consciousness," the judge said.
I understand the guy is a pathological racist and some aculturation is in order. But why church? If I had a choice between church or jail, I'd pick jail, just to raise a stink. Nobody will force religion down my throat!
